Human rights lawyers have asked Zimbabwe’s national rights watchdog to walk into the country’s prisons and put on record how deaf, mute and hard-of-hearing inmates are treated behind bars, arguing that the correctional system is failing people who cannot hear, speak or follow spoken instructions.
The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) said it wrote to the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) on 17 September 2026, urging the commission to use its constitutional powers to visit and inspect all prisons and related places of detention.
The petition was authored by lawyers Obey Shava and Obey Chitowamombe, who want the commission to establish exactly how inmates with hearing and speech disabilities fare inside facilities run by the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS).
What the lawyers want the commission to examine
The request is broad. The lawyers are asking the ZHRC to assess whether deaf, mute and hard-of-hearing prisoners can communicate with warders, receive information about their cases and entitlements, raise alarms when they are in danger, and take part in health, rehabilitation and other essential programmes.
According to the petition, a visit of this kind would satisfy the commission’s obligations under Section 243(1)(k) of the Constitution, which empowers the ZHRC to inspect prisons, detention centres and similar facilities in order to establish the conditions under which people are held and to recommend remedies to the minister responsible for those institutions.
The lawyers have gone further and asked the commission to consider opening an investigation under Section 243(1)(f) of the Constitution into whether the rights of deaf and mute inmates in ZPCS custody have been, or are being, violated. They also want Fanuel Masora to be told in writing what steps the commission intends to take and what comes out of any inspection.
The case that prompted the petition
The intervention follows the prosecution of Fanuel Masora, a deaf and mute man whose only means of communication is Zimbabwe Sign Language.
Masora was initially charged with murder but was convicted by the High Court on 4 March 2026 of culpable homicide, as defined in Section 49 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act. He was sentenced to three years in prison, wholly suspended for five years, and ordered to complete 420 hours of community service at Deaf Zimbabwe Trust.
In handing down the sentence, High Court judge Justice Emilia Muchawa placed Masora in a special category of persons with disabilities who have endured deep social isolation and persistent barriers to taking part in ordinary social life. The judge also weighed the specific difficulties he faced while in detention, including whether he could realistically cope with and comply with a custodial sentence.
Shava and Chitowamombe argue that the case lays bare the particular vulnerability of deaf people caught up in Zimbabwe’s criminal justice and correctional systems, particularly where everyday functions such as speaking to prison officers, accessing information, signalling for help and joining rehabilitation programmes all depend on effective communication.
Communication as a question of safety
The petition frames communication not as a courtesy but as a safety mechanism. An inmate who cannot hear a shouted warning, follow a verbal command or explain a medical emergency is exposed to risks that other prisoners do not face, the lawyers say.
That concern extends to the remand stage, where accused persons must understand charges, court dates and legal advice, and to the post-conviction stage, where participation in programmes can influence parole and reintegration outcomes.
The ZLHR is asking the ZHRC to inspect both correctional and remand facilities operated by ZPCS specifically for the purpose of documenting the conditions under which deaf, mute and hard-of-hearing people are held, and then to recommend fixes to the responsible minister.
What happens next
The commission has not yet publicly outlined how it will respond to the request. Under the Constitution, it can conduct inspections, investigate alleged rights violations and issue recommendations, though its findings are advisory rather than binding.
For disability advocates, the petition is a test of whether Zimbabwe’s constitutional protections translate into tangible changes inside cells, clinics and interview rooms, where sign language interpretation is rarely available and staff are seldom trained to work with prisoners who cannot hear or speak.
The ZLHR says it expects the commission to confirm in writing the steps it proposes to take, and to share the outcome of any inspection it carries out.
